Quinnipiac student, Rachel Moran, in preparation for a future in Finance and International Management, explores International Business Strategy through hands on experience with a luxury fashion company in Italy.
4 December 2015
PERUGIA, Italy— This semester, Rachel Moran, among other Quinnipiac students, chose to study abroad with the Umbra Institute in Perugia, a small medieval city in central Italy. Moran chose Perugia because of its small-town feel in which she has found authenticity and comfort during the past few months.
Ms. Moran is currently enrolled in a new Umbra course titled IBST 380: International Business Strategy. This course encourages students to understand the legal, political, cultural, and competitive environment changes that occur when a company crosses an international border; while providing students with the tools needed to understand how to form an effective strategy that matches a firm’s resources and capabilities to the diverse markets it encounters. Course goals are achieved through student collaboration with Pashmere, a family-owned, luxury cashmere producer located in Perugia.
Pashmere’s previous work was included in collections produced for designers such as Donna Karen, Prada, Fendi and Versace. However, since 1999, the company has shifted its focus toward producing its own designer brand that creates extra-light, artisan knitwear. Their goal is to continue growing their business in various markets, around the world, while continuing to deliver a high-quality, luxury experience. With this in mind, Ms. Moran and her classmates are working to provide the owners of Pashmere with direction to enhance the company’s ability to achieve specific goals outlined at the beginning of the semester. “I like hearing that Pashmere actually uses our projects,” says Moran who later expresses that knowledge that the company would be using her research has significantly increased her interest in the project and has given her confidence in her abilities as an international business person.
“I have never taken a class or had any type of experience like this; where you actually get to work first-hand and meet the owners of the company, where you get to see the business and see where everything is being made. I don’t think I will ever be able to work first-hand again with a company unless it is something I do on my own, as a job,” says an enthusiastic Moran. “I love the fact that Umbra sets up a way for us to do this and I feel like Quinnipiac gave me this opportunity. I honestly think that everyone should study abroad”.
About the Umbra Institute:
The Umbra Institute is an American study abroad program located in the central Italian city of Perugia. Perugia is the ideal setting to study abroad in Italy, with fine arts, business, and liberal arts courses. Building a meaningful connection with the local community, both as a student and a temporary citizen, is an integral aspect of studying abroad. Umbra maintains vibrant, well-established relationships with partners in Perugia that allow students to incorporate real-world practice with theoretical coursework into their curriculum. Visit www.umbra.org for more information about Umbra’s diverse and immersive academic programs.